Training

Looking at Blackboard, July 2006, i was indeed fascinated. But sitting in the same class as my mom had its issues. I was glad it was a certificate, i was impressed at her tenacity, and she doesn’t know how much that week long certificate has grown into a full fledged career path. Blackboard has since grown by leaps and bounds – See Here

So when one of my classes in FOSSFA’s FBT Training had an online module, 3 years later, i was more than happy to ‘study online’. Online learning is not necessarily the same as e-learning – with the advent of Flip classrooms, anything is possible with e-learning, but perhaps the most common form of electronic enabled/supported learning is Online Learning – we are happy to call it E-Learning.

Online education is education that is delivered via the internet. Throughout the world, e-learning is fast becoming an important mode of education delivery, not only for online students, but also for full-time students at many of the larger universities. However, online learning and the provision of learning materials via the internet necessitates a change of paradigm – a recasting of the traditional conception of a university. Classrooms, lecturer’s offices, sports facilities, and student residences are largely made redundant, while servers (whether local or in the cloud) become the centre of the university’s education provision. – source

FOSSFA’s elearning happened on a platform called DOKEOS. Beautiful, but somewhat tacky, but that was 2009! Dokeos has beautiful features – See Here. On here, i was able to quickly transform from a Student, to hosting an entire class, successfully.

You can say this transition freshened up my desire, and suddenly, i was ready to reunite with a lost passion. In all this time, i had carried out numerous trainings, and i had even used my laptop in most of them. But you see, that is not quite it.

In 2010 when i started out at IHSU, i found Moodle! I had heard about it, had even used it on a few online courses, but now i had the honor to administer it. IHSU runs Moodle 1.98, but that was only until a few months ago, as Moodle’s upgrades are much of a temptation!

Moodle is an Open Source Course Management System (CMS), also known as a Learning Management System (LMS) or a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE). It has become very popular among educators around the world as a tool for creating online dynamic web sites for their students. To work, it needs to be installed on a web server somewhere, either on one of your own computers or one at a web hosting company.

Moodle is perhaps one of the more popular Online Learning Environments – Check Stats Here – and has served at IHSU, faithfully, for over 4 years and 2 graduation classes now. As you can imagine, being a Moodle administrator is alot of fun. My work is technical, some tasks daunting, and others, well, simply magical – like the smile of a successfully logged in first timer! Now we are in the middle of upgrading to 2.2, then to 2.4 the latest!

Loiusa is from Malawi, she is a Lecturer, speaks lovely french (not that i know better); and Sabina is a recent graduate from a Beninese University – she understands Louisa, and all i can do is look on! In 2012, this small West African nation was the host to the annual e-learning Africa Conference – website – and my second time in attendance. Dubbed as Africa’s premier networking event for educators pursuing e-learning, and service providers of the same, i have to say, I have met more than my match for passion, excellence and practical e-learning across the African continent. Its addictive, and this year in may, i hope to be in Namibia.

Only last year, Hospice Africa Uganda approached me and asked to be helped with setting up their online learning platform – Now Up – and i could not believe my excitement. Hardly quarter and the list is growing. But that’s not it, its the happiness with which i approach everything e-learning! Its exciting, installing servers, training staff, via a platform they are new to, I have even submitted (my first ever) a session proposal to e-learning Africa, because i feel there is something about e-learning missing from my google searches.

The Uganda Centre for Open Source Software is now running Linux Certification and Training via http://coss.ug/elearn.

At IHSU, we have our firsts cut out for us – the first ever e-learners pre-course survey; the first ever IHSU e-learning survey (hope to become annual). And for once, i have alot to learn, but it feels so good, i feel like a wall onto which you can throw anything, and it will be transformed into something about e-learning.

I guess when ICT and Training are your life passions, Training Online, using ICT should come natural, and for me, the timing couldn’t be better.

Distance Education ( ordistance learning) is a mode of delivering education and instruction, often on an individual basis, to students who are not physically present in a traditional setting such as a classroom. Distance learning provides “access to learning when the source of information and the learners are separated by time and distance, or both.”[1] Distance education courses that require a physical on-site presence for any reason (including taking examinations) have been referred to as hybrid[2] or blended[3] courses of study. [Source: Wikipedia]

RT @davisthedoc: Hospital Health IT Use Climbs, But Will Health IT Worker Supply Keep Up? http://t.co/IKsox06W

This reading is very interesting for me, because my University has asked me to consider writing a course for Health and Technology. Something that our students can leave with, in regard to incorporating the latest technology trends, devices and applications, into the eeffective day-to-day work of Nurses, Doctors and other Public Health Professionals.

Its quite an exciting topic and am excited to be working with Eunice Namirembe, and Olivia Nanteza. Together, we hope to draft and deliver a course that will train the 21st century health practitioner to apply and incorporate technology in their work.

That was the tweet, that confirmed our completion of a successful training and Certification camp, conducted at Uganda Matrys University in Nkozi. In all, 8 participants sat for LPIC 101 and LPIC 102, 2 exams that contribute to LPI Level 1 (Junior) Certification. We are excited, because, 1 year ago, we feared because one of the promoters of the FOSS and OSS Chapter in Uganda closed its doors.

COSS reopened the chapter, and began where we had strengths. As we build the community of FOSS and Linux enthusiasts, we intend to deliver, one class at a time, better Linux – certified Ugandans.

We are grateful to our partners FOSSFA, GIZ; both under the ict@innovation project, as well as S7, that continues to generously host us.

Its been a very hot entry into 2012, from Kampala, and the heat could not have been multiplied by the excitement that comes with knowing Africa’s premier FOSS gathering – IDLELO – is round the corner. Its a great time, as my last experience ushered me into the world of Linux and FOSS on the continent, paving the way for what has now become my life and bread – Linux Systems Administration, Training, and Advocacy.
Last year, I introduced COSS, and one month into this year, its great to share with you our challenges, and experiences, and what we would like to see happen this year. Perhaps you will be tickled to become a part of what we are trying to achieve.

Our experience has been that, we have learned from the best, and as a result, we can be very good with our planning. But the real place the rubber meets the road, is in the numbers of Ugandans who are willing to walk into COSS as ask for a Linux Certification. We have great presence within the Kampala LUG but even that is not enough to convince the converted, when it comes to certification. So our strategy, as anticipated for 2012, is to target employers of Linux Professionals. We want to find out from them, how do they tell what “3yrs Linux Experience” really is, and how can we help. But we also think, lets not teach old dogs new tricks, lets go to the schools, where the children are, lets see how to get into Primary and Secondary Schools with Linux.

When you have no riding Government Policy (despite CIPESA’s efforts), and no big name firm backing you, its hard, even harder when you have a day-job. Though our priorities are right, its time to ask interview panels, whether they are qualified enough themselves, to tell if the new recruit has the right Linux Skills. And we want to be there for both. Moreover, its time to ask ourselves, are we ready to leave our desk jobs, to move FOSS Activities and FOSS Training into the 8-5 slot, and the replace the rest else where? Are We?

What about the economics of FOSS Training?
How much is enough to cover your training skill set and time? And how much do you take home, if the company has got to grow? What if its just a TOT requirement, with not much enforceable follow up, what’s the motivation to return home and train others? You have to love FOSS enough, to give off a few freebies…afterall, its FOSS.

Finally, you have to wonder, Are Africans really interested in FOSS? Yes they are, i think. How much they show that is a story for another time.
So, hopefully we meet sometime this year, and we talk about your FOSS experiences, but until then, i wish you the very best of 2012.

Today, i was happy to host the Linux User Group at IHSU. This is what happened here. Its quite a small thing for me running all this Ubuntu, but the raves and uhmms i heard while the IHSU Tour of facilities happened was really something of an encouragement.

IHSU will be happy to show anyone around, what it means to run/power a University with Open Source Software!